US administration wants to 'try something new' to deal with Pakistan

The Trump administration believes that it is time to try something new other than maintaining strategic patience and offering inducements to Pakistan, PTI reported.

A senior Trump official who spoke to a group of reporters on condition of anonymity said that the policies, such as the Kerry-Lugar-Berman bill which gave billions of dollars to Pakistan, followed by the successive US administrations vis-a-vis Pakistan post 9/11 have not worked.

"These sanctuaries really threaten stability in the region and they continue to fuel the overall terrorism problem that we are facing," he said.

The US is committed to not allowing either Pakistan or Afghanistan to become a safe haven for terrorists from where they can attack the US and its allies, the official added.

Terrorists continue to operate freely inside Pakistan and there is a relationship between terrorist organisations and the establishment, he said.

The official added that the president has been clear about his commitment to stabilising Afghanistan.

Last week, the Trump administration suspended approximately $2 billion in security assistance to Pakistan, resulting in an outrage from Islamabad.

The Pakistan Foreign Minister, in an interview to The Wall Street Journal, had said that America was no longer an ally of Pakistan.

About President Donald Trump's comprehensive South Asia strategy for regional diplomacy announced in August last year, the official said, "It looked at India-Pakistan relations, encouraging better ties between the two countries and reducing tensions between them".

The policy is not about looking at Pakistan through the lens of Afghanistan, but it is about looking at the region and the future of the US, he said.

"We have invested a lot of blood and treasure in Afghanistan. We are committed to not allowing the Taliban to dominate Afghanistan," the official said.

Former Speaker of the US House of Representative, Newt Gingrich, in an interview to AM970 in New York said that Trump has "shocked the elites" by freezing US aid to Pakistan.

"It has so thoroughly shocked the elites that we actually are going to protect America, and defend America, and that were actually going to render judgement," he said.

"If you kick us in the shin, were not going to pay you," Gingrich said.

(With inputs from PTI)

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